Module 2

2020 Modular Polyhedron

Design and develop a metallic polyhedron that contains multiple identical units and each unit or modular should consist of no more than three kinds of pieces. This polyhedron should be visually attractive, and its aesthetic value should be aligned with its structural value. All the identical units need to be assembled without using any type of glue or adhesive. All the cuts and folds need to be well designed and precise in order to fit the units together nicely. Due to the different thickness, paper, cardboard, sheet metal all have their unique properties. choose materials for your final deliverables, understand the properties of the material, the limitations and constraints of the fabrication process, and experiment with multiple prototypes to study the structures and assembling process.

Objective

The purpose of this project is to develop a metallic modular polyhedron with a diameter around 10”, and explore the mutual design benefit between the aesthetic value and structural value.

WHY

Modular design is a design approach that creates things out of independent parts with standard interfaces. This allows designs to be customized, upgraded, repaired and for parts to be reused. Modular designs tend to have benefits for customers and sustainability as they allow for reuse and incremental upgrades as opposed to replacing an entire unit.

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HOW

  • Study in groups on the different types of polyhedron (face, edge, vertex, regular polyhedron and irregular polyhedron), interlocking joints, structure and assembling process, research the material options and its attributes.
  • Create the units, use paper or cardboard assembly to test the ideas.
  • Choose one of the tested structures to develop 5 sets of modular and its accessories. Try to find the mutual design benefit between the aesthetic value and structural value.
  • Refine details in Illustrators, understand the constraints of Water Jet Cutter and use Laser Cutter to test the ideas and its accuracy.
  • Cutting Capacity- 12″*12″, Maximum Thickness- 1/4 inch=6.35mm